Carlos Alcaraz is an avid sports enthusiast. It is a well-known fact that he passionately supports Real Madrid CF and is a regular visitor to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The 20-year-old Spaniard has many celebrity fans too. Brad Pitt, Daniel Craig, Priyanka Chopra, and Hugh Jackman were among the attendees in London when Alcaraz lifted the Wimbledon trophy.
In addition to his fascination for the Spanish soccer giants, Alcaraz has become a self-professed NBA fan. He arrived at player media day in New York City donning a T-shirt with a photo of Michael Jordan taking a shot. Therefore, it isn’t unusual that Alcaraz had a star NBA player attending his third-round match.
Alcaraz receives Butler support
Back in June, Jimmy Butler took to Instagram to cheer on Carlos Alcaraz. Alcaraz quickly became one of Jimmy’s favorite tennis players.
“He’s always poised. He’s never rattled and more than anything, it looks like he’s having so much fun out there,” Butler told. “I think whenever you have fun and you have that mentality that you know you’re the best, you go out there and you play as though you’re the best, results happen and he’s not No. 1 for no reason.”
Butler even traveled from Miami to London to watch Alcaraz in action at Wimbledon. There, the NBA player sat in Alcaraz’s player’s box on occasion.
“Incredible to witness in person,” Butler said. “He never gives up on any ball, he’ll dive, he’ll do something miraculous just to try to get the ball over the net and win a point.”
The Miami Heat star managed to meet the teenage star in person when he took to the court to play an exhibition match with Alcaraz. The arrangement was part of the “Stars of the Open” event, which raised $320,000 for relief efforts in Ukraine. The match was a riotous occasion for fans as Butler repeatedly yelled at Alcaraz and managed to win a point too.
As Carlos Alcaraz began his third-round clash with Dan Evans, Jimmy Butler was seated amongst the New York crowd. Midway, he managed to grab Alcaraz’s attention. In an Instagram story, Alcaraz can be seen having a laugh while looking towards Jimmy. Dan Evans even shared in on the joke with a giggle.
Jimmy Butler has also been a supporter of Coco Gauff, with the 19-year-old crediting him for her US Open victory.
World No.1 progresses to US Open round of 16
‘Carlito,’ as Carlos Alcaraz is affectionately known, is in fine form at the US Open. He has found the rhythm, technique, and composure that have yielded him many successes this season. In his quest for title defense, the Spaniard has ensured he plays to his strengths.
In his third-round match, Alcaraz faced 26th seed Dan Evans from Britain. Dan Evans had just won in four sets against Botic van de Zandschulp in the previous round and planned to bring all his hard-hitting gameplay to the fore against Alcaraz.
In a high-quality and hugely entertaining match, the defending champion won 6-2 6-3 4-6 6-3.
“He’s a tricky opponent, great slices, good touch and it’s my game as well so it was a pretty good match,” said Alcaraz after the match.
“We played some great points that made us smile, Dan as well. It’s great to see Dan and I on a tennis court, we tried to entertain and make the match fun.”
Alcaraz knows defending his US Open title will put him alongside Roger Federer in the history books. He is set to face Italian Matteo Arnaldi in the fourth round., who upset 16th seed Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.
Carlos Alcaraz is producing quality, entertaining tennis at the US Open that has got long-time fans like Jimmy Butler excited to watch him play. Will Alcaraz defend his title and create history? Let us know your predictions in the comments section.
